Hey! So, here is a super long chapter for all of you! =D
The look on Marian Hawke's face when she returned from the Inquisitor's quarters worried Solas. It was as if she had seen a phantom of some kind and since the woman wasn't well acquainted with Ellana, it made Solas morbidly curious as to what she saw.
Though, the Champion of Kirkwall beelines for Varric, who had come over to sit with them for the remainder of breakfast, distracting the group from their theoretical fade talk onto something worldlier and it stopped as soon as Hawke tapped his shoulder. She pulled Varric to the side and whispered something in his ear that made his eyes go wide.
"Well shit," the dwarf swore, his gaze zeroing in on the door to Ellana's quarters. Ven snorted when he caught where their gazes lingered.
"Ah, I should have warned her that my sister had company staying in her room last night."
Everyone at the table, save Dorian, who looked a little bit too proud of himself, whipped their heads around to Ven. "Company? As in…" Bethany trailed off hoping that Ven was in a gossiping mood. Solas had noticed that the mage seemed to enjoy learning the juiciest gossip the Inquisition had to offer.
The elf didn't disappoint. Ven seemed to thrive under the attention. "As in a lover, yes. He came with me from the clan. Hiked up a mountain for her, wearing shoes, something he detests. Shows real devotion, that elf. Not that I like that he's with my little sister, but there are worse partners she could have chosen for herself."
"And here I thought she'd end up with Solas for sure," Bethany muttered, in what the Solas assumed she thought was a quiet voice, but she was solely mistaken. Solas nearly choked on the fruit he had been eating and Ven gave Solas a hard stare.
"You better not have been making passes at my sister. You, hahren, are far too old for her."
Solas rolled his eyes at the jab at his age. "Fear not, da'len, nothing has happened between me and your sister. We keep our interactions very professional."
Dorian made no effort to hide a derisive snort. "Oh, please, you watched her every move while we lived in Haven. Everyone thought you stalked her for Andraste's sake."
Solas felt a bit of color rising to his cheeks. He hadn't realized he had been watching her that closely, or that anyone would take it as something romantic in nature. He very much agreed with Ven, he was far too old for Ellana and what Ven didn't know was that he had far too much baggage to burden her further. Ellana had never pushed him towards something he wasn't ready for, no matter how much she truly changed, no matter her lineage, nothing could ever happen between them.
"It was nothing like you're insinuating, Pavus."
"Yea, it seems while she is interested in broody elves, she likes warriors, not mages." Solas saw Bethany's eyes widen at Hawke's description. Did they know whom Ellana was sleeping with? Solas felt like he was missing something important and turned to Ven for some kind of confirmation or denial, but the elf just pushed some food around on his plate, completely relaxed.
"Yes, our mother was so disappointed she wasn't interested in the first from a neighboring clan, but what can you do," Ven said with a dramatic shrug taking a bite out of a crisp apple.
"I'm guessing you know this unnamed elf?" Solas asked the whispering duo, Hawke and Varric's head turned to him simultaneously, looking like children that had been caught sneaking sweets late at night.
"I don't feel like I should be the one telling who the Inquisitor is sleeping with, whether or not I know who it is," Hawke admitted, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Maker this makes things more complicated."
It was in that moment that the Ellana made her way out of her room, her hair tied up neatly, a light skip in her step. It was just like any other morning with her. The inner circle that was seated was staring at her as she approached. Her brows furrowed when she noticed their constant piercing gaze. Her focus then turned to her brother who held his hands up in a peaceful gesture.
"Lock your door," was all he said before going back to his breakfast.
Ellana's shoulders sagged, but she sat down next to Dorian, who was sending her smug looks. "Oh, don't start, or you don't get to meet him." That quickly changed the Tevinter's mood. He looked like he wanted to protest, but Ellana raised a power covered sweet threatening at Dorian and he quickly shut his mouth, not wanting to be covered in sugar this particular morning. Ellana began to pick up a large amount a food into a plate.
Her eyes glanced over to Varric and Hawke, who weren't looking at her. "I've already explained your situation here, Hawke. You don't need to worry, there isn't going to be any unnecessary bloodshed. Everyone is going to be on their best behavior," she told them before she threw the powdery treat at her brother. It smacked right between his eyes in a puff of white. By the time Solas turned around she had vanished.
Solas raised an eyebrow. Just who was this mysterious elf, that he would cause such worry in two of the most laid-back people in the entire Inquisition?
It wasn't until later that evening that Solas ventured up to the Inquisitor's quarters. He had seen her lover speaking with Varric and Hawke in hushed tones near the hearth. A lyrium warrior…he hadn't thought he'd ever see one outside of Arlathan. The Pantheon kept them as elite warriors. They were fearsome creatures in ancient times solely comprised of the children of Elgar'nan. Though, lyrium used today was not the exact substance used in ancient times, the ceremony still had to be brutal with only certain bloodlines being able to produce it.
Had more Ancient elves gone to sleep and woke up to sire so many power elves of this generation? Solas wondered how a mortal elf could even withstand the ceremony to receive the markings, nevertheless function without being driven mad by the lyrium that seemed to be infused into his very being. Solas had always found the warriors disturbed, easy to anger, slaves to their rage and inner demons. The markings must be excruciatingly painful, even after years of having them applied, they were meant to keep the warrior ever vigilant.
It was even more disturbing that a mage from Tevinter figured out how to apply the markings without killing their subject. If Solas had no sense of self-preservation he would have gone and asked the elf how he'd managed it, but Solas knew better. The Tevinter elf seemed to be on edge as it was and shied away from most that made move to approach him.
Solas found it odd that Ellana would choose this particular elf to bond with. The two of them were obviously intimate. There were brief touches between the two, ones that seemed unconscious. He had seen the two of them move around each other with a practiced ease that not many could muster without prolonged close quarter living. Ellana had rejected many suitors throughout her journeys across Thedas. Fenris just didn't seem to be someone that Ellana would fall in love with. He was too serious for her playful and giving spirit.
Solas figured that this was as good a time as any to speak with Ellana about what her brother had told him the night before.
He didn't want to have to eliminate the twins when all of this was over with Corypheus, but it was starting to look like that was what he was going to need to do. In another life they could have all been friends. If they figured out his identity, it could ruin years of planning. So, here he was at her door, the biting chill of wind whipping though the broken fortress walls. A sense of dread filling him as he worked up the courage to speak with her.
It took a few moments.
Solas knocked loudly on the door twice and waited for some kind of reply. There was a muffled "come in" from the other end and Solas took a deep breath before pushing his way into the room.
The first thing that he noticed was that it was significantly warmer in Ellana's quarters than it was right outside of the door. The next thing Solas heard was the sound of a quill scratching on parchment. He looked towards the sound to see Ellana hunched over a stack of paperwork. She had three different quills on her person, one tucked behind each ear and one in her hand. They seemed to have different colored ink in each, red on the left and blue on the right, corresponding with the colored stains running down her neck.
"I didn't think that you were trying to take up body painting, da'len," Solas teased, causing her hands to jump to the two different wet spots on her neck. She cursed rather colorfully before removing the two quills from behind her ears.
She spun around eyes narrowed. "You are not who I expected to come and see me tonight, Solas. Is there something I can do for you?"
Solas had a good idea on who her preferred company would be, given the morning's conversations.
"You brother told me some rather interesting information yesterday evening."
Her mouth tightened for a moment. "Did he now? I told him to break the news gently. I should have known better. Ven isn't known for being…subtle. If you ever see him cast magic, you'd understand."
He'd keep that information tucked away for further investigation.
"Why didn't you say anything to me?" Solas asked, genuinely hurt. He had thought they had built some kind of trust between them. If they had a shared ancestry of some kind he thought that she would have shared it with him by now. They had nearly known each other a year at this point.
Ellana stopped what she was doing to give Solas an incredulous look, anger seeping into her expression rather quickly. "You don't have a right to be upset that I hid something from you, when nearly everything you tell me is a lie." Solas flinched. "You don't think I notice these things, but I do, Solas. I'm a trained assassin, I know when someone is lying to me and you do it constantly, even if what you say are merely half-truths. If you want me to be honest with you, you need to start being honest with me. You have secrets, hahren. I was not going to push you. Whenever I would begin to broach the subject of what you were hiding from me, you would close up. I felt that you would tell me in your own time, but you never did, so I never shared," she replied face red and her breath coming out quickly.
"Ellana, I'm sorry that I've-"
She held up a hand to stop him. "No, you don't get to say sorry and continue lying to me. You came up here to figure out how much I knew of you and your past."
He refrained from showing any visible surprise at her reading of him. "How much do you know of me?" He asked carefully, making sure to give nothing away.
"Past the fact that you're an ancient? Not all that much. Just some speculation on Ven's part, but I think he's fairly close to the truth. Though, from what he's told me, our mother has an idea of just who you are, but she isn't telling. Claims she wants to see you for herself first."
Solas pinched the bridge of his nose. Their mother was an ancient elf as well, he had nearly forgotten. Did she know him and if so, just who were the twins related to?
"Who was your mother?"
Ellana took a deep breath, running a hand through her hair, her blonde mane a bird's nest instead its usual braid. "She was a seamstress. She created things for nobles back in Arlathan. She taught me everything I know about sewing, though she has centuries more experience than I do with a needle and thread. Ven said she heard about my potential visit to the Winter Palace and is sending me something to wear. She is a powerful mage though, rose the ranks and became the First to our clan and then Keeper shortly thereafter."
That was more information than he was expecting. Her mother was a servant then. Solas let out a sigh. There was a very good chance that this woman had no idea who Solas was and for that he was grateful. At least his secrets would stay safe and Ellana and Ven wouldn't need to suffer.
He moved onto a safer subject.
"She's making you a traditional dress, I assume?"
"Something that the Arlathan court would be jealous of, or so Ven tells me," Ellana replied with a fond smile, her fingers twitching, as if they wanted to pick up a needle and thread.
Solas had seen some of the threadwork that Ellana had done and it was rather impressive, so he could only imagine how skilled her mother had to be. "It will be good to see something elven in the Winter Palace besides the servants," he commented dryly. If his spy network was correct, he would make a lot of allies in the Winter Palace.
"Would you like some kind of fancy Elven clothing as well, Solas? I'm sure my mother is bouncing off the walls to get to do her craft again. I'm pretty sure she's making something for all the Elven members of the inner circle, even Sera, which will be hilarious. Anything is better than the hideous coats that Josie came up with. She had me wear one and it fit me like an empty potato sack would," she explained, wrinkling her nose.
Solas had to agree with Ellana. He had been fitted for one of the Inquisition Jackets as well and it hadn't suited him at all. It would look nice on Cullen and Cassandra, maybe even Leliana, and they all had one thing in common, they were human. Josie made no concessions for their Elven companions.
"I have a feeling that I wouldn't be able to stop your mother even if I said no. Is our Lady Ambassador going to let you get away with wearing what you want to the Winter Palace?"
Ellana grinned.
"It is going to be a long drawn out fight, but I am not going to have every member of the Inquisition wearing those awful coats. I want to be as offensively elvish as I can to the people of Orlais, without actually cursing at them," she told him with a solemn nod, that almost got him laughing before she continued her small tirade, "it doesn't make sense to wear those hideous things, not when we have someone infinitely more skilled creating the clothing. Vivienne can jump off the battlements if she even dares to say anything about them when they eventually do arrive."
Solas snorted. He knew quite a few people within Skyhold that would pay a large amount of gold to have that event take place.
"I'd love to see that. She'd get a round of applause as she'd jump. There'd be celebrations throughout Skyhold for days."
Ellana ran a hand through her hair, leaning back in her chair, picturing the image with a fond smile.
"It be the party she'd want for her death, but not for reasons she'd want. Though, she would die before the scandal I'd cause at the Winter Palace and we wouldn't want that," Ellana added with a sadistic grin on her face.
Her vindictive side was always interesting to see.
"Yes, we wouldn't want that, would we?" He replied with a wry grin.
He was about to ask her something else when the door to her quarters opened and the sulky elf friend of Hawke's was back. He must have been talking to Ellana longer that he'd anticipated. When he noticed that Ellana wasn't alone he didn't strike out at Solas or seem all that surprised that she had another man in her room. The lyrium covered elf paid him no mind, passing him to press a small kiss to the crown of Ellana's head, whispering something into her ear, which earned him a light swat on the arm. Sols recognized the language he was speaking as Tevene, but he hadn't studied, so the mage had no idea what he said.
"Yes, yes, I know, introductions. Fenris, this is Solas, the mage who kept me alive after I got this mark." Solas could tell that she stressed the final part of her sentence since Fenris' eyes narrowed dangerously at the word mage. "Solas, this is Fenris. He's saved my life nearly as many times as I've saved his. He is also my betrothed, much to Ven's displeasure. The prat wants me to die a virgin."
"Yes, well, at this point your bother is delusional." Fenris said drawled and Solas could hear the Tevene in his accent and it grated on him. It was different from Dorian's, the accent was on slightly different syllables, but startlingly similar in pacing. It was a mix of high and low tongues. Fenris was someone that needed to know the language of those considered above him, but always be reminded that he was of a lower class.
Then Fenris turned to Solas, his demeanor calm, collected and cordial. "You have my thanks for saving Ellana. I don't know what I would have done, had I heard of her death."
The statement was left open ended, but Solas had a fairly good idea of what would have occurred if the Chantry and followed through with their original plan to kill Ellana.
This elf would no doubt protect Ellana until his dying breath. Solas would need to remember that for later. Fenris would be an issue in the grand scheme of things, that was for sure. "It was nothing. Ellana needed help and I gave it to her."
Ellana rolled her eyes. "Don't be modest, Solas. It's not like you."
He felt his cheeks heat up slightly at the jab, but brushed it off. "I'll leave you two to your evening. No doubt all of Skyhold will be gossiping about it tomorrow."
Ellana rolled her eyes. "Please, all they need to do is watch the lightshow from the battlements. Between my anchor and Fenris' lyrium brandings, everyone should know what's going on up here," she replied with a sultry leer that had the tips of Fenris' ears burning.
Solas took that as his cue to leave. He did not need to hear anymore of Ellana flirting. It made him a little nauseous, actually.
Well, what did you think? Like the extra long chapter? Next chapter is leading up to Adament and the Winder Palace. If I remember right, it is more of a filler chapter than actual progress into the story line. Either way, more fun with Solas being broody and dealing with the twins. Fenris is also going to be broody, as always. Too many broody elves in one place.
Anyway, thanks for so many reviews, favorites and follows this week! I'm glad so many of you guys are enjoying the story! =D
See you all next week,
Animerocker